Moran is an old Republican whose life was forever transformed by his days of glory as a guerilla leader in the War of Independence. Now, in old age, living out in the country, Moran is still fighting - with his family, his friends, even himself - in a poignant struggle to come to terms with the past.
Amongst Women
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About the Author
John McGahern was born in Dublin in 1934 and brought up in the West of Ireland. He was a graduate of University College, Dublin. He worked as a Primary School teacher and held various academic posts at universities in Britain, Ireland and America.In the opinion of the Observer, John McGahern was 'Ireland's greatest living novelist'. He was the author of six highly acclaimed novels and four collections of short stories, and was the recipient of numerous awards and honours, including a Society of Authors Travelling Scholarship, the American-Irish Award, the Prix Etrangère Ecureuil and the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Amongst Women, which won both the GPA and the Irish Times Award, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and made into a four-part BBC television series. His work has appeared in anthologies and has been translated into many languages. His last book, Memoir, was published in 2005.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book was a gift from an Irish friend some years ago. I only picked it up two weeks ago and started reading it: I shouldn't have waited that long, this is a great book.
It's not an 'easy' story though: a former Irish war hero, Moran, lives in the Irish countryside with his four teenage children (one boy and three girls, the oldest son Luke moved away to London after a personal conflict with his father) and Rose, his second wife. We follow the life of the family: how Moran lives alone with the children, gets to know Rose and marries her, the often difficult relation with his children: his second son follows his brother's example and migrates to London. This book is a character sketch of a stubborn, dominant, but also loving father. At first sight, not the type of book where the reader easily identifies with one of the characters. Nevertheless, in a subtle way the story draws you into the life of this traditional catholic family. The underlying theme is universal: intergenerational troubles and difficult inter-human relations. Some things never change, no matter the time period or location.
The book is very well written. Despite the setting being extremely `uncool' in its setting (key words: rural, traditional, poor, hard-working...), I never lost interest in learning more about the characters and the dynamics of their relations. The book succeeds very well in describing the remote life on the farm with Moran dominating the other family members' lives. It creates an almost claustrophobic atmosphere. As a reader you understand why also Moran's second son runs away. The women - including Rose - react differently: equally irritated at times, but never questioning his authority and remaining loyal. Yet, and this is the major strength of the book, I developed a growing sympathy for Moran. It's not easy to be a father and a husband, especially if your EQ isn't too high. ;-)
Definitely not a feel-good story but one that made me understand more about human nature and with a surprising sad but nevertheless upbeat ending. An ode to family.
It's not an 'easy' story though: a former Irish war hero, Moran, lives in the Irish countryside with his four teenage children (one boy and three girls, the oldest son Luke moved away to London after a personal conflict with his father) and Rose, his second wife. We follow the life of the family: how Moran lives alone with the children, gets to know Rose and marries her, the often difficult relation with his children: his second son follows his brother's example and migrates to London. This book is a character sketch of a stubborn, dominant, but also loving father. At first sight, not the type of book where the reader easily identifies with one of the characters. Nevertheless, in a subtle way the story draws you into the life of this traditional catholic family. The underlying theme is universal: intergenerational troubles and difficult inter-human relations. Some things never change, no matter the time period or location.
The book is very well written. Despite the setting being extremely `uncool' in its setting (key words: rural, traditional, poor, hard-working...), I never lost interest in learning more about the characters and the dynamics of their relations. The book succeeds very well in describing the remote life on the farm with Moran dominating the other family members' lives. It creates an almost claustrophobic atmosphere. As a reader you understand why also Moran's second son runs away. The women - including Rose - react differently: equally irritated at times, but never questioning his authority and remaining loyal. Yet, and this is the major strength of the book, I developed a growing sympathy for Moran. It's not easy to be a father and a husband, especially if your EQ isn't too high. ;-)
Definitely not a feel-good story but one that made me understand more about human nature and with a surprising sad but nevertheless upbeat ending. An ode to family.
50 of 54 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is a study of the faults and consolations of humanity: its irrational impulses and self-deceits, its capacity for forgiveness, and also its willingness sometimes not to forgive. Above all it is about the precious human ability to love and be loved. Indeed it shows how the lives of people are shaped by how they love and choose to be loved.
It also shows how choosing not to love - the bitterness that can come from the slights, betrayals and humiliations that make up the retinue of human existence - is not a natural state, and that the grace to overcome it is always available.
The deep satisfactions of this book derive from the exquisite skill of the author. His voice is gentle, yet his eye is merciless. He has deep understanding of the forces that bind men and women, and keep them apart. The most powerful after-effect of reading it, is to feel his own love, or at least his compassion, although it is never explicit. It is conveyed as if across a space. The distance is necessary so we don't lose focus, so the clarity of the picture does not blur. What we see - eventually, in the authors good time - is how we must be part of this story too.
It is a short book, but no work of fiction published since it was published twelve years ago carries more weight.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
An excellent novel detailing the minutiae of life in a small Irish community around the 1960s. Deals with themes of family life, women's issues, religion, politics and rural life. The style is deceptively spare, but it's a compulsive page-turner. This novel worked very well with A level students as a coursework text, when used in conjunction with plays by Brian Friel and poems by Yeats.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Paved with Good Intentions
Aloof and uncompromising, Moran is disappointed with the independent Ireland for which he has fought, and vents his frustration in an ongoing battle to dominate his children,... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Antenna
4.0 out of 5 stars
amongst women
I read this book in order to help someone with an essay . Interesting picture of family life in Ireland and the ties/tensions of a father/children relationship.
Published 13 months ago by Ms. J. Wakeham
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fictional Memoir Based Loosely on the Author's Own Life
John McGahern's "Amongst Women" begins slowly, but after a certain point, I really became caught up in it. Read more
Published on 6 April 2011 by pk1225
5.0 out of 5 stars
A quiet book with deep impact
This novel works on you slowly. It opens with a brief summary of the present time on the farm with the family relations sketched in. Read more
Published on 24 July 2010 by Nina-Jo Rees
4.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting and intense
This is a very intense novel and Moran, the central character, is interesting. I found it a little slow to start
with but I became fully involved with the family. Read more
with but I became fully involved with the family. Read more
Published on 29 May 2010 by C. Lynas
5.0 out of 5 stars
masterpiece
Quite simply one of the best novels ever written. A masterpiece of character driven fiction. Read it now.
Published on 23 Mar 2010 by Conor Murphy
5.0 out of 5 stars
A quietly compelling read
This profound and gentle book belies its topic, which is survival after war and the inheritance bequeathed by a survivor to his children. Read more
Published on 9 Jan 2010 by Michael Marett-crosby
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not your ordinary, violent Da.
Set in rural Ireland, this uncompromising family drama revolves around Michael Moran, the father of five. Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2003 by Mary Whipple
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